Chapter Eight

Callum

 

". Have fun! You're a fucking nutbag!" I called as I waved to Grayson.

He grinned and shot me both middle fingers, then went trotting off the join the rest of the complete idiots as they readied themselves to jump into a frozen lake. Voluntarily.

I opened the liftgate of my pickup and hauled myself up there to sit and watch as volunteers in rowboats broke the ice up at the shoreline into big, jagged chunks. This was sheer lunacy.

This morning, as I suffered through a killer hangover, I resented the hell out of Gray for signing up to do something so stupid as the Polar Bear Plunge.

But then again, one of the basic tenets of being a good friend is this: when your best friend is doing something completely idiotic, you show up to cheer him on.

"Yo, Cal!"

I looked up, surprised to hear Rett's voice. I figured he'd be working, or doing chores, or alphabetizing his DVD collection.  Something finicky and no fun at all.

"Hey, Cal!"

I sat up straighter and grinned. There she was, looking as sunny as the bright morning sky.

"Morning' Harper," I said, trying and failing to keep the big, dumb grin off my face. "I didn't think you guys would want to see this."

"Are you kidding me?" Harper said, trying to hop up and sit next to me. I extended my hand and hauled her up easily, and she flopped down next to me with a grin. "I've always wanted to see this. And with Gray doing it, I doubly want to see it."

I ignored the mention of Gray and waggled my thermos instead. "Coffee?"

"God, please."

"Me too," Rett piped up.

I had completely forgotten he was there.

"Sure man," I said, sliding over so that he could sit on the other side of me. "Help yourself."

There was a loud whoop from behind the stand of trees that bordered the waterfront, followed by a chorus of answering whoops.

This was totally stupid.

But as I sat in the bed of my pickup, sharing a thermos full of coffee with Harper, I said a silent prayer of thanks to my buddy, my pal: Grayson Abbott, The Complete Idiot.

"Are they getting started?" Harper asked, shimmying in place. Her leg brushed up against mine, and she looked down to where we were pressed together.

But she didn't move away.

My heart thudded harder as I shifted further away from Rett, so that my leg was completely pressed up against the full-length of Harper's thigh. She leaned up against me, her fingers cupped around the Styrofoam cup full of coffee and I wanted so badly to put my arm around her, but I had to content myself with sort of putting it behind her so as not to raise Rett's suspicions. "No idea," I told her. "As far as I know, there's no real rhyme or reason, they just sort of...run into the water."

She shivered dramatically. "That sounds really silly."

"It is," I agreed. "But think how warm you'll feel, watching them from back here while drinking hot coffee. You need more?" I asked, reaching behind me and grabbing another thermos. "I came prepared."

God, I sounded so fucking eager I wanted to slap myself.

"You sure did," Harper laughed. "And I think I do, thanks. This morning it's going to take a full pot before I can start functioning again."

I leaned back to grab the extra thermos, sending the truck swaying gently from side to side. Harper giggled and flopped dramatically into me. "Staaahhhhp," she moaned. "I'm still dizzy."

"Here," I said as I reached over to pour the thermos for her. I closed my hand around the cup to steady it, and all at once I was aware of our fingers touching.

But even more aware of Rett watching us.

I cleared my throat and shifted my attention to the idiocy going on around me.

"Are they lining up?" Rett asked as he leaned forward, narrowing his eyes. "How does this work, exactly?  There doesn't seem to be anyone in charge."

Of course he was worried about the rules. I chuckled and sighed. "Like I said, I have no idea. This is the first year I've actually been awake to see this."

"Has Gray done it before?" Harper asked.

"No," I said, shaking my head. Even though we were here to cheer him on, I resented how we kept talking about Gray. "He said he was signing up this year before he got too old and sensible to do something like this again," I said.

Harper laughed and then suddenly leaned forward pointing. I noted with some irritation the look of excitement on her face when she spotted him. "There's Gray!" she called.

I shook my head. "The idiot. He was so hungover this morning."

"Jumping in the lake will cure that," Rett said dryly.

A starting gun went off, causing all three of us to jump, then all of a sudden Harper was on her feet clapping and jumping up and down as Gray went tearing into the water wearing only his boxers.

I watched her instead of him. How could I not? Her eyes were shining, and there were pink roses blooming on her cheeks. She was wrapped up in her brother's scarf, her hair a messy tangle on the top of her head, and I swear she had never looked more beautiful.

But it wasn't me she was looking at with those shining eyes. It was Gray.

Last night had been one thing, but here in the cold harsh light of morning, I could see that she clearly liked him. And liked him a lot. Once again, I told myself that this was good, that I shouldn't stand in the way. But instead of doing the thing I knew was right, jealousy made me stand up and sling my arm possessively over her shoulder as I watched Gray flounder in the water.